RANDOM PHOTO - SCHOOL BUS

 

Nothing too exciting today, just following a school bus on our way home after having lunch out. They were heading to pick up the kids that you can see on the left of my photo. It was great to get out. 

I was surprised the schools weren't closed as I had read that they were yesterday. 

Snow has melted a smidgen. We saw several people trying to make some headway on their driveways. I saw one man even using a pitchfork, another a pole driver. 

On the main road, even with the roads cleared by the plows, there were cars stuck and their cars were buried up to their windows in snow and ice, by the snowplows I'm assuming. These are people who live in an area where there is only one parking spot available in front of their homes. If more than one car they are parked in this area. I think it will be a while before they can use their vehicles.

Anyhow, it will give you an idea of what our conditions are like. Not so bad as some have it, I know.

Wherever you are I hope you are keeping safe and warm, and thanks for stopping by.

HAPPY SUNDAY EVERYONE - A BIG THANK YOU …

to the two industrious young men - brothers - who turned up yesterday afternoon and asked if they could shovel our driveway. We also asked them if they could do the path up to the front door and around our mailbox and we explain about the thick ice (we stopped our mail until next week, so that our mailman wouldn't have to deal with trying to get to our mailbox and he's such a nice man, he would do that). 

Anyhow, it was no easy task. Their parents must be very proud of them, very sweet young guys, with a lot more strength than we had, and very hard working. When they saw Gregg getting ready to sprinkle ice melt, they took the large bag and did that for him also. One of their other jobs is they trim trees so we took their card and they will be the first we call when we need them. 

As soon as they left, dear other half got the car out and was able to get through the neighborhood okay, stopped off for a few groceries and brought me back a coffee. He was very glad to get out.

There is still not as much room to drive in the neighborhood, as there are big mounds of snow on each side to navigate, but navigate he did. With this storm being so widespread, many of you are probably seeing these same conditions yourselves. At least the parking lots at the stores have been cleared for the most part, and the main roads are clear.

Our weekend forecast: a very cold start with temperatures near 25-30 degrees F (-3.9°C to -1.1°C) for highs and sub-freezing, near-record lows (single digits to teens) through the weekend. The weather remains cold and mostly dry through early next week, with daytime highs gradually rising from the mid 20s to upper 30 degrees F by midweek. Woo-hoo! A heatwave!  

Gregg asked if I would like to get a grilled chicken sandwich from one of our fast-food places we go to. I was happy to say yes, and I took a few photos coming back, just to show you what the roads were like.

I was happy to get out so, a big shout out to the two young men who knocked on our door. Also, a big thank you to all those hard-working people who get up in the wee hours to clear our roads. We are very grateful!

I hope all goes well with you out there and 

A Very Happy First Day of February! 

Thanks for stopping by. 

A POLAR BEAR IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD...

a snow bear. Son sent these yesterday while driving through one of the neighborhoods on his way home, and I decided I would share today. 

He said the main roads have been cleared and it’s still tricky getting through the neighborhoods as there is only room for one car and no parking on the sides.

Thanks for looking and stay safe and warm.

DANGLY EARRINGS

 In a mad moment on a sleepless night (at around 3.00 a.m.), I ordered these.

The lady who makes them had a going-out-of-business sale, and they arrived in the mail a few days ago.

They were for pierced ears (my ears aren't), but I remembered I had converters in a box somewhere, along with a pair of small needle-nosed pliers. I found them and got to work, getting rid of the wires and attaching the converters. They are prettier than the photo shows, but it will give you an idea and this old girl still loves her dangly earrings, says I smiling.

We didn't get as much snow as we were expecting, but hubs found it impossible to clear what we did have off the driveway. There is a thick sheet of ice on top. No melting as it's going to remain bitter for several days, and supposedly more snow next Saturday. We have a steep driveway that can be treacherous -we have a history. Fortunately, we stocked up beforehand.

The sun is shining outside at least, and Sophie Squirrel is doing okay, though she's a wee bit cold! 

The Kissing Bunnies, as you well know, have their love to keep them warm.

I couldn't help but put in a word of the day in the photo above. Son and daughter-in-law sent these.

My grateful thanks to the person who plowed our road early this morning, and for that matter to all who go out in this weather to take care of us and keep us safe. Bless your hearts, you deserve our never-ending gratitude. When we eventually can dig our way down to the road, we'll be ready to get out of here.

What did we do on our snow-bound day? We read, I put this post together and we made our dinner, Creamy Beef with Butterfly Pasta. It was very good and we added a veggie salad on the side. I will share it next Monday.

Take good care of yourselves out there and I hope all is well where you are. Stay safe and warm.

For our international friends, to translate the words on the 5th photo down.

Chionophile.

A person who loves, enjoys or thrives in the snow and cold weather is called a chionophile. From Greek, this term refers to someone who finds joy and peace during winter, particularly when the landscape is covered in snow.

Pronunciation: kye-ON-uh-file.

SATURDAY MORNING AT THE BIRD FEEDER - SORT OF!

After discussing this with their 100 other family members on the roof, they all flew off and visited their raven cousins in the southwest. It was a bit of a surprise but who wouldn't be with 100 family members suddenly turning up? Crows don't have cell phones! In the meantime, a few days later...

Oh Sofie Squirrel, you look like you are auditioning for a new Conehead movie. 

They are also getting ready for the Conehead audition, at least their umbrella is. It all depends if it freezes or if the snow melts.

We're all glad it stopped snowing. Sofie is still clutching her pearls, I mean acorn, the Froggies3 are still watching the Kissing Bunnies. The audition was cancelled because the snow melted a few hours later. The old wise crow who foresaw the snow coming, is now warming his feathers in the sunshine and warmth of the southwest, and... 

that's how it goes on a Saturday Morning at the Bird Feeder.

Have a great weekend everyone 

and thanks for flying in.

WEEKLY HAPPENINGS - MONDAY 1/20/25 TO SUNDAY, 1-26-25

 A jigsaw puzzle completed recently. I don't know where this is. It would be really nice to identify the scenes. I wonder why they don't do that? However, the picture was beautiful, and I always enjoy finding the pieces and seeing the picture taking shape.

Hello Family and Friends, the latest weekly goings on for you. You are encouraging me by letting me know you enjoy these. It is always very much appreciated. I will keep going until you all say 'uncle'.

I am starting off with a question. Does anyone have an explanation of why I can’t follow back new followers when I visit their blogs? I have tried many times and always have a pop-up that tells me I have failed to become a follower. Is anyone else experiencing this? I know of one new blogging friend who mentioned that she also had this problem when visiting others. Did I mistakenly change a setting on my blog? I had read a while back that blogger may be getting rid of this feature. I haven't heard anything since. I hope you have an answer for me. It is very perplexing. 

All that being said, thank you to all my followers and to my new blogging friends who followed me this week. I won’t give up until I can return the kindness. I also thank everyone very much for leaving a comment.

The above shows our weather forecast for this week beginning Monday,1/27/25 to Tuesday, 2-4-25. It seems to be warming up a little.

Monday, January 20th, 2025: it snowed yesterday but not much, enough to cover everything, including the mounds of snow that have not melted yet from the previous snowfall. Today it snowed again for 20 minutes, and the sun has been shining ever since.

Son called earlier and the three of us had our usual chat. 

For breakfast I had my Weetabix et al, and Gregg a slice of buttered sourdough toast.

Around 2:00 p.m. we made our favorite soup, cheesy vegetable and corn chowder. We make it often in the winter. Snow on the ground and soup it is. Two hours later we served it with a crusty roll. I have shared it many times but just in case you haven't seen the original link, it can be found here. I have always liked the taste of parsley and added it for garnish. I kept a few sprigs for later to chew on. It is also a great palate cleanser.

Off to get a cup of green tea. I usually have a cup of coffee in the early morning, Green Tea in the afternoon and Honey, Vanilla and Camomile tea in the evening.

Tuesday, January 21st, 2025: Gregg felt like a bagel for breakfast today and off he went. I asked him to bring one back for me.

I found a new recipe to make and added the ingredients to our shopping list. We try to make at least one new recipe each week. We share an online shopping list. I add any additions, always thinking they are there for the next shopping trip. But they immediately pop up on his feed and soon after, he's off to Wegman’s after texting me that he is going there. My additions popped up on his phone while he was eating his bagel. He usually reads the news on his phone at the same time. The shop stopped the hands-on newspaper a long time ago.

While he was gone I did my exercises like a good little girl. Teacher will be so proud. Tongue in cheek? Maybe a tad! It will be the first thing my physiotherapist will ask in the morning. I have a 10:30 appointment.

Gregg arrived home with a bagel and cream cheese, also my coffee which he picked up on his way home. He hadn’t been into the coffee shop for a few days, and it had been noticed. One of the Baristas said “You haven’t been in lately?" He told them his wife was trying to cut back. (True but he did not think to tell them we go to another coffee shop after my physiotherapy sessions, the drive-thru.) They are very friendly and he enjoys the chat. There were no other customers and as soon as he walked through the door, the three of them said, "Hi Gregg!" When he reaches the counter, even before ordering, they know what he always gets, and it is given seconds later before a word is out of his mouth. They also know he doesn't drink coffee but he pops in for me. This has left him in good standing with the young-uns behind the counter. Those young-uns come and go, this is a part-time job for most of them as they are college-age and putting themselves through school. When they graduate they move on, but he always has time to develop a rapport with the ones who are there.

At Wegmans he picked up things for the recipe, which were an onion, 1 sweet red pepper, Old Bay Seasoning, and sour cream. The recipe is a shrimp dish and I already have it set up for next Monday's Recipe Post. We have most of what we need in our supplies. Other additions the man liked the look of on his way around the store; a can of Hormel chili (he wants to try it over his roasted cabbage), crinkle cut frozen fries, 2 more crusty rolls to go with the soup and lastly, a bunch of carrots.

Our late lunch/early dinner was another bowl of the homemade soup from yesterday. 

Son called but he said he didn’t mind us slurping while we were eating (family joke). We offered to call him back but he said if it was okay with us, it was okay with him. We never turn down a phone call. 

Wednesday, January 22nd, 2025 at 2:38 p.m: I have been home for a few hours after my physiotherapy appointment. The place was hopping and more men in there than women this time. Many of the exercise beds were occupied. Another young lady started me off today. First the bike, then holding a ball behind my knee and pressing it against the wall, extremely painful. Standing on tippy toes before that, again extremely painful. A couple of other stand-up exercises, can't remember them exactly. Then time for my regular therapist to come in. These young-uns are the warm-up exercise team. 

I was tucked away in a corner today and I had a good view of what was going on until my physiotherapist turned up. There was also a repairman sitting on the floor who had taken one of the exercise machines apart. All the pieces were on the floor around him. I tried to be a bit nosy to see what he was doing, but it was difficult as I was at that time still doing the tippy toes, ouch, tippy toes, ouch, do that ten times I was told. I would have much rather seen what the repairman was doing. My physiotherapist stepped it up a notch and gave me a good work out! The most painful part was her trying to flatten my knee out as I was lying down on the table. It was excruciating. At the end of it all I was hunched over on my way out the door, and limping was more pronounced, as well as feeling very washed out. Gregg said “Remember to stand tall!” Actually, this is what the therapist told me to do in the beginning, try to stand tall, don't hunch over, so I get the occasional reminder through the week from the man. Good advice and actually appreciated.

I briefly met a very nice lady with her daughter today when we first arrived. The mother was using a walker, younger than me and the poor lady’s face was full of pain, she looked close to tears. I was so sad for her. She was having difficulty walking. I didn’t like to engage them in conversation while in the waiting room. They were speaking in a low tone to each other. We exchanged a few more smiles and that was it. It just didn’t feel the right thing to do somehow. There are times you know not to impose. She was called in for her physiotherapy session, but I saw them as they were leaving. By this time I was in the main foyer of the building, waiting for Gregg to get the car. The mother was stooped over her walker and the daughter was helping her. They both looked and saw me sitting across the foyer. Mother smiled, daughter waved. Daughter said something about how cold it was outside, which I didn’t quite catch all but I smiled and waved, wished them well and to stay warm. They got into a car and were gone.

The car also found itself in MickeyD’s drive-thru and, sorry to say, my resolve on no coffee and a brownie didn’t quite work out today. Next time and who am I kidding?  So, lunch taken care of, with dessert.

I had a lovely cup of tea this afternoon thanks to one of my sister-in-laws. 

It was one of the two gifts she gave me the last time I saw her. I took a photo of the box from all angles below. As you can see, it spoke to my heritage, with a little message added from me. 

Very true!

It will be very nice to think of her and the rest of the family when I sip my tea. Hopefully it won't be too long before we see them again.

Dad and son (above as you will probably recognize by now) got together this afternoon and had a fun time in DC. Son had to be in the city and met up with a good friend, and Dad enjoyed his conversation with him too. We have all known him for years but don’t see him as much as son and daughter-in-law do. He is most definitely one of the good guys and in fact is a real sweet guy. Their dinner was at Planet Hollywood. Gregg had a Caesar Salad with Grilled Chicken, son ordered a Surf and Turf Burger, which was a Cheeseburger topped Grilled Shrimp. It all looked a bit too much to me, but son said it was great. His dad had a bite, and said he wished he had ordered it instead of his salad, though even the salad was excellent.

At home my dinner was the cheesy vegetable chowder we made yesterday. Love it, will always be a favorite soup, and very comforting on a chilly day.

Gregg arrived home at about ten o’clock and it’s always fun to hear what they did. It was time to call it a day soon after.  

Thursday, January 23rd, 2025 at 5:11 p.m: a quiet day. It was very cold outside, warmer than yesterday at 28 degrees F. It went down to 9 degrees last night. I am off early for my physiotherapy appointment in the morning. We will be waking up to 18 degrees F. There are two appointments a week and I have to do my own exercises daily. 

Gregg didn’t go out today, shocker I told him and he laughed, agreeing.

Tomorrow’s therapy session was going to start at 7:30 a.m., but they called to ask if I could come in at 8 instead. No problem, an extra half-hour was welcomed. The receptionist said at my last appointment that they open at 6:30 a.m. after Gregg asked her. I already have my clothes laid out for the next morning. I don't mind early appointments as it's nice to have the rest of the day free and clear.

No breakfast but around 1:30 p.m. Gregg fixed two fried eggs with corned beef hash and a slice of toast.  It was a nice change of pace from Weetabix.

Dinner was at 5:00 p.m. we finished off our veggie cheese and corn chowder, each having a bowl with a crusty roll.

I had an evening snack of a 1/4 cup of plain yogurt with a few raw almonds. 

I had a text from a friend earlier today. We are going to have a proper chat on the phone for a catchup soon. 

Not many birds appeared. A Mourning Dove, Mr. Cardinal and a few Dark-eyed Juncos, and that was it. Mustn’t forget the two squirrels of course.  They arrived towards the end of the day. 

Friday, January 24th, 2025 at 12:47 p.m: last night I went to bed early, falling asleep right away, probably around ten, but woke up at midnight and tossed and turned all night. I felt a bit light-headed on the way to my appointment. This was the one they changed to 8.00 a.m. from 7.30 a.m. 

We were in the car at 7:15 a.m. when the phone rang. It was the office saying they had to cancel because my therapist called in sick. I think the receptionist was surprised that I wasn’t more upset as she apologized at least three times. I told her not to worry, these things happen and asked her to let my therapist know I wished her a speedy recovery. 

She would have understood if she saw me do a silent 'Yes!" to Gregg, with pointy finger waving circles in the air above my head. I was grinning from ear to ear as I turned to him, did a tiny jiggle in the seat from side to side, my knee paid for it but what the heck. It made him laugh, not my knee obviously but because I was so happy and it was cartwheels in the head time. I find it very easy to say hello to my inner child at such times, 74 going on 16! I felt I had been given a week off from school. I was sad my therapist was under the weather, but after the last session, I was surprised how ecstatically happy and relieved I was. All that being said, I hope she feels better very soon.

An after thought as we were on our way home, I realized that I would miss it as I find it interesting. No logic there! Not just the process but I enjoy people watching. Anyhow, dear man looked at his wife and matched her grin as he turned the car around. This call came through as we were stopped at a traffic light. I told him I would do my own exercises at home. That had to wait as I immediately fell asleep on the sofa - maybe I will rest my eyes for a few minutes first - and two hours later...

From my nap I woke up cold but a cup of green tea took care of that. The temperature outside was 35 degrees F. The house always seems to feel a bit chilly to me. Gregg was out of the house for a couple of hours, and I barely remember him leaving. A little while later the phone pinged and he sent me a picture of a fox. It isn’t very clear, just a back view but look at that tail? Gregg was quietly sitting in his car in a parking lot when the fox suddenly appeared, seemingly oblivious to his presence. This is another built-up area he was in.

Just because it doesn’t show how beautiful he/she is, here is an old photo I took in 2016. I had walked in our back yard and saw this little kit hiding in the long grass peeking out at me. 

Also, this is a link to a post where I got the above photo. 

I am sharing one who surprised me after I looked through the curtains to do my nightly check before going to bed - I may have heard a noise. It ran down the steps right after I took my photo as he spotted me immediately. No flash and only the cell phone. You may remember him as I shared before. It didn’t seem that long ago, long enough though as I noticed our old wooden rails. We had the new deck built in October of last year.

Also, another link here from 2020.

For dinner we had a simple meal of sautéed cubed pork, boiled and cubed potatoes and roasted cabbage with a light dressing. There was enough left over cabbage for one more meal the next day. I will be adding it to the Monday morning recipe post, with thanks to the chef who put it all together. He did a great job having found the recipe on Instagram (hopefully this is the one I shared yesterday, the 27th).

 

Saturday, January 25th, 2025 at 7:33 p.m: not much going on today. Gregg went to our local supermarket for our weekly doughnut and my coffee from a couple of doors up.

We pottered, read a bit and had our daily chat about current events. Son called for his daily chat. He will be over in the morning for a couple of hours after he drops our daughter-in-law off.  

I remembered my sketch pad and pencils and drew this from a picture. Well, I guess it looks like a cat! He also looks like he’s been sipping on the sherry, leaning to the side a bit. My first try in a very, very long time. I am going to look for some tutorials how to draw a cat. I used a black pencil from my new set and didn't take a long time doing it. I rushed it a bit too much. I just wanted to make a start.

I also enjoyed a game of Scrabble and put a few more pieces together on my jigsaw puzzle. This is one I finished a while ago. Hopefully I haven't shared it before.

Lunch/dinner was at 4:00 p.m. and we had one of the man’s delicious cheeseburgers with sliced tomatoes, lettuce, grilled onions and sliced dill pickles. I said he should go sell these on a street corner. I have often told him I like them much better than the ones sold at our fast food drive-thru, at which he looked fake-shocked and said “Yeah, but tradition!”

Snack in the evening was a small bowl of cottage cheese with a few pumpkin seeds sprinkled on top. 

I am once again tired, and it will be an early night for me.

Sunday, January 26th, 2025 at 1.08 p.m: son left half an hour ago to pick up our daughter-in-law. Had a lovely time as always. Breakfast was courtesy of Chef Gregg (mine was 1 each of egg, sausage patty, bacon and toast) and the three of us had another good discussion about a lot of things. He helped his dad carry a few things down to the basement. The Christmas tree has finally been stored away. It has taken me a lot longer to get things moving so far this year.

It looks very bare at the window.  I lost my temporary ‘blind’. The birds can see me coming. I am going to have to put my thinking cap on.

That's about all I have for you this week as I shall be going to bed soon.

Have a great rest of the week everyone, and thanks for sticking through to the end.

WEEKLY HAPPENINGS - MONDAY 1/13/25 TO SUNDAY, 1-19-25

 This is the snowman I used for my bird post last Saturday. A lot of people still have their decorations up. I think the snow has hampered people taking them in. 

 Hello Family and Friends, here is my latest weekly missive. Thank you for continually letting me know you enjoy these. They are full of the mundane I realize, but fun for our family to look back even at the mundane. At the same time, hoping it won’t be too boring for you.  Definitely feel free to skip.  No one is taking notes, ha!

The above shows our weather forecast for the week beginning 1/20/25. I also left in Sunday (19th) to show the snow.

Monday, January 13th, 2025: not much going on today except that I did find an old sketch pad with colored pencils. I have been inspired by some of you talented artists out there.  Anne, Sandra (MadSnapper) and Christine.  

I am having a hard time finding the right colored pencils as the names are not just black, brown, white, yellow. How about, “Water You Up To?”, “Into The Woods”, “It’s getting S’late”. What the Howdy Doodee is that??? Howdy Doody is my question but come to think of it, that would make a good name for something, or not.

Gregg treated me to the above. I complained that after looking through all those colors, I couldn't find black which I must have misplaced way back, just before I tucked them into a storage box. All forgotten until coming across them recently. Lots of black pencils here in my new set.

Tuesday, January 14th, 2025: I went to my second physiotherapy appointment. We arrived at 3:20 p.m. for a 3:30 session. This young man walked in - he looked like a teenager but people seem to be getting younger to me these days. He took me in the back room, which resembles a mini gym. 

There were two others being seen to. Young man showed me to a recumbent exercise bicycle, where I was told to do a certain amount of rotations. The next one had me standing on tip-toes, a few wall exercises, one with me holding a medium-sized ball behind my knee and when finished with those, my regular physiotherapist directed me to a table which can be automatically lowered, which she did for me to scoot on the thing. 

I had to lie down while she manipulated my knee/leg in different directions and then she gave my knee the most wonderful massage with warm oils. I don't like being touched by strangers, but this was the most soothing massage and really eased my sore knee. Gregg was at my side the whole time and I turned and told him quite seriously he would have loved this.  

There was a very cute toddler brought in by his grandmother. She was the receptionist and maybe not a regular thing, but she was looking after her grandson that day. I thought it was rather nice that they let her do that. He was good soul therapy. His job was to bring lollypops around which were accepted with thank you’s. We, staff and patients, thought he was a little darling. Not a bother at all and everyone worked around him, everyone smiled. 

The place was actually very quiet. There was a lady about my age who had broken her wrist, and she got a workout finishing off with a wrist massage. There was also a young man whose finger had grown back in on itself at a 90 degree angle after a sports injury. He had had it operated on but the therapist told him he needed to go back to his doctor. She implied that she didn't think it was healing as fast as it should. He was 16 years old. Gregg told me all this later as even though we were not very far away, I am getting as deaf as a doorpost and he still has ears like a hawk. Something else I have to get checked out soon. 

Just as a matter of interesting this place has a very good reputation. Our local professional football team send their injured here. Also, I have seen a few high schoolers who have had sports injuries hobbling around while waiting in the foyer for Gregg to fetch the car.

It was an interesting time, one that I wasn't looking forward to but came out feeling like I was heading in the right direction. My knee and leg were a bit sore the next day (15th). To be expected I suppose but the therapist said that would get better as my knee strengthened. My session was about 45 minutes and I was out the door. 

We went to McDonald’s on the way home. I forgot to take my water so had a Sprite. Usual burger and fries. I told Gregg I was getting tired of fast food. He looked shocked (fake tease shock). He will readily admit that he can eat fast food until the cows come home. 

What I don’t get tired of is my stop at the coffee shop for a latte and a new addition, “way-to-go-girl-pat-on-the-back-for-going” chocolate brownie, so it's all relative. Paired with my coffee, a brownie is a great treat and not one I get all the time but after my therapy sessions, what can I say? Last Friday I did the same. I am having a talking to myself for my next session at the end of the week. My other self will probably tell me to stop kidding yourself, go for it.

I went to bed at 10:00 p.m. but looked outside first. It was snowing, not hard but enough for it to start sticking on the deck. It wasn't even in our forecast. (The next morning it was negligible.) We still have a lot of snow left from last week.

Wedesday, January 15th, 2025: Gregg cooked a great breakfast this morning. We had leftover cubed boiled potatoes which he sautéed, along with a sautéed egg and a brioche bun. He was looking for hamburger rolls yesterday and they were sold out. The only buns available were these brioche ones, four to a pack. We had one each for our cheeseburger and then today with breakfast. We will get them again sometime.

For dinner we're having the slow-cooker meal I shared from Pinterest here. You can scroll down on that page for a refresh if needed. I put yeast on the shopping list to make rolls, but I'll leave that for now. It's our "trying-not-to-add-to-the-carbs-meal-we're-cooking-today" day. Nice thing about this is that as soon as I got up, I put the ingredients into the slow cooker. It will be very nice having a hot meal to put on the table with very little fuss later on. My dear other half says we should use the slow cooker more often and I agreed. 

For a snack earlier I had a handful of dried edamame beans, with a couple of dates.

My exercise odds and bods arrived. I ordered a 6" pilates(?) ball. This is what I used during my session (You may notice in this picture our Christmas tree is still in the family room. I will have to start taking the ornaments off soon. It is normally taken down on 12th Night.)

Next item, a stretch band to wrap around my foot and I told Gregg I'll take the body and he can toss the band thank you very much...

 and eureka...walking shoes that actually fit! 

I had never heard of this brand before - Fitville. I looked on my laptop and in the subject line put “walking shoes for people who need extra support”. I was very happy that they fit, and had ordered a size bigger as I also wear thick socks in the wintertime. 

A far cry from my 5-inch heel green satin pointy shoes it took me five months to save up for when I was 21. I needed them for a local Christmas ball I had been invited to. It was a very big deal to me. I had already bought myself a green halter-style satin evening dress, an almost perfect match in color, and I could actually dance in high heels back in those days. 

Sensible shoes, that's what I'm into these days!

And still on the subject of knees and such, I had the most interesting conversation with my dear other half this morning. He was asking how my knee was feeling, I told him it was sore but we both agreed, understandable after my work-out session yesterday. 

We were talking about how people developed knee issues. I have had several friends over the years with the same thing. Word for word: The man stopped me in my tracks as he suddenly said, "I wonder if it's because you are slightly knock-kneed?"  “What?” I said, "What???"  To which he replied, "The surgeon told you that and so did the therapist." "What????"  

"You didn't hear that?" he said. "No, I didn't hear that!" I said. Flabbergasted, that's what I was. Not surprising that I didn't hear these two professionals as not only am I a bit hard of hearing, I also have white-coat syndrome. I can literally close down and may have missed a word or two or three. That's why I'm glad Gregg has always gone in with me for my evaluations. He has a great memory and misses nothing. 

"Knock-kneed?" I said again, at which he replied, "You didn't know? I've known it ever since we met!" "What??????? And you didn't think to mention this to me before? It's been flipping 49 years!" Admiral Akbar turned up at this point. I saw him whispering in Gregg's ear. "It's a trap!"  

Hubs continued, "Well, I thought you knew, and I never thought about it again until the doctor and therapist mentioned it. I don't look down at your knees too much." Akbar is rolling his eyes to the ceiling. I told him, "No doctor throughout my childhood ever mentioned it to me. I know my parents never said anything. I am not even sure they knew." Again, flabbergasted!  Maybe it was those 5-inch heeled green satin pointy shoes you think? No, I don't think so either. I was born this way.

So, apparently, I'm knock-kneed and it may or may not be partly why I have knee issues now. Who knew? Not me! You live and learn every day about yourself. At 74, soon to be 75, I'm learning this and that's the end of that subject. 

I may have given Gregg the side-eye a few times that evening, as Admiral Akbar wrapped one arm protectively around his shoulders, this as I rolled my eyes to the ceiling. I may have shaken my head a few times but am now resigned to the fact. And away the Admiral went, happy that all was well in our Star Wars Universe. And when I read this to Gregg I got the desired effect, he laughed out loud. I hope our son will too when he reads it. (He did!) We all have our funny conversations at times and never take ourselves too seriously. And yes, two in our family are Star Wars fans, and the third knows who Admiral Akbar is.

Thursday, January 16th, 2025 - 3:03 p.m: Gregg is out of the house with son. I told them both to go enjoy themselves. I am very happy with my own company for a few hours. They will probably be having Mexican food for lunch, generally having a chit chat and looking around for a bit. (They had pizza for a change.)

So far today, at breakfast I had my Weetabix with a few almonds, a tablespoon of pumpkin seeds and three dates, same-oh, same-oh but always enjoyed.

Lunch was a Trader Joe's Scallion Pancake topped with mashed avocado, and on top of that half a cup of mashed sweet potato. 

For dinner I had a bowl of tortellini, spinach and tomatoes made the day before. This is another dish that could benefit from more broth as I think the tortellini absorbs whatever liquid there is.  I couldn’t be bothered to add any more however and just ate it as is. 

Adding one more thing about this dish to remind me when I make it again, I noticed when I spooned it into our bowls the first day, there was plenty of broth, but it seemed to me the liquid had curdled somewhat. I am thinking this may have been because of adding the diced tomatoes and not draining the can first. I thought the extra liquid would only add flavor to the meal. Did this make it too acidic? Not sure! I attempted to stir it in without too much success, but it didn’t detract from the taste. It was still yummy even with everything I mentioned.

Fun looking at the birds. The Northern Flicker turned up unexpectedly and a yay from me. He was trying to shoo off the Mourning Dove who was already at one of the feeders, but the dove stood its ground. I was quite proud of the dove, but glad the flicker got a feed later.

Friday, January 17th, 2025 - 8:23 p.m: I came back to continue what I had written - one very long page and must have accidentally deleted it. So, after taking a long break I am starting again: 

My second appointment of the week with the physiotherapist was at 1.00 p.m. We are asked to turn up ten minutes early, but we arrived with 20 minutes to spare. It allowed us to have a nice chat with the receptionist. This is the lady who brought in her grandson last time. 

She is a big football fan and mentioned the upcoming game. I'm lost on these things, but I try to keep up. My dear other half 's mom enjoyed all sports as her dad used to take her to games. My dad, as I have mentioned before, believed young ladies should not involve themselves in sports, perish the thought. Mother was not into sports either and Dad was a complete love but still had one foot in Victoriana, and I say this while blessing his cotton socks. 

My other half knows all about individual players. The lady and he went on at some length, and knew all the statistics on each player. I just said, oh, that's interesting. I wish I was more enthusiastic, but I see a ball and I glaze over. Except golf. I enjoyed watching golf but not for a long time. As mentioned in another post a while back, we got rid of our TV and don't regret it, yet. Our iPads have replaced our need for television. I had stopped watching for about a year before Gregg said we should get rid of it. We kept the internet and that was it.

Anyhow, getting back to my physiotherapy session, a young lady came to get me this time. Gregg always likes to come in with me, and I noticed a couple of husbands with their wives who were getting work done this time. The place was busier. One man but mostly women, I found that interesting. There were knees, ankles and hips being dealt with, and all walking around with canes, including me to start, and I am getting used to it.

My therapist is warming to us I think. She was more chatty but still had a job to do and was very professional. The massage on my knee was my most favorite of all. Manipulations and movement not so much. I winced several times with one out-loud "ouch" and I apologized. (I found the exercises before I started with the main therapist more difficult also, especially the tippy-toe one.) 

I wore my new shoes and she noticed them straight away. I felt like a student with her teacher. She approved! Have to say though, that after wearing my light flatties all this time, I felt like I was walking around in a pair of gum boots.

It was a tougher session that usual, even more than last time, but I suppose this is the way it is. I was glad it was over with, and I appreciate her help with my recovery process, but if I could have done cartwheels out of that place, I would have.

Strangely, the car pointed its way back to the Golden Arches, and then to the coffee drive-thru, coffee plus brownie on the way back. My sensible personality who was still wagging her finger at me, didn't get much of a say today either. Gregg pointed the car’s nose to Mickey D's, and I pointed its nose to the coffee drive-thru. 

On the way home my phone rang and it was my niece in Germany on FaceTime. We had a problem with voices cutting in and out but I'm thinking it was because we were going by all the electric lines. Okay, not an expert but we decided to call back when we got home 20 minutes later, as it is electric lines all the way home. 

Everything was back to normal once we were home, no static and no cutting in and out. We had a super chat with niece, her boyfriend and his daughter. Great news, all three are coming to visit us in April! As you can guess I am very, very, very happy. My niece mentioned this a couple of weeks ago, and then recently the daughter asked if she could come too. We were delighted at the idea and told them so. I have always been very close to my niece since she was a wee one and seeing her for the first time. I have loved her dearly ever since. We were on the phone for about an hour, all five of us chatting away. The time went quickly and all we need now is the exact date of their arrival. 

The rest of the day I had my knee up on cushions and didn't do a lot else other than read. I did get up to try and get a bit of movement going. I always remember an old friend a little older than me wincing at her aches and pains as I expressed concern. She told me not to worry, that when we get to this age, we come with sound effects. Oh how right she was!

Saturday, January 18th, 2025 - 12:44 p.m: Gregg went to our supermarket to get our weekly breakfast donut, and my coffee a couple of doors up. A very welcome start to the morning.

There is still snow on the ground, but I can see a lot has melted. 

I have started taking the ornaments off the tree :(

I figured I had to make a start. I dragged the kitchen chair over and will do it in bits and dabs during the day. Son will be here tomorrow and we will ask him to take the tree down to the basement for us. I always miss that tree for a while.

Nothing else going on today, just pottering. Nothing too exciting for lunch or dinner.  Same-oh, same-oh.

Sunday, January 19th, 2025: it has been raining this morning. We seem to be on the edge of the snow line, so we are wondering if we will get any (we did). 

Son came over for his usual couple of hours or so. He drops off our daughter-in-law and picks her up when she's finished a few hours later. Gregg cooked us breakfast: a slice of sourdough toast, bacon and egg. It was excellent! While he was here and the three of us were chatting in the family room later, I took several ornaments off the tree but not all. I am going to finish up tomorrow.

Not long after son left, we had a lovely chat with brother-in-law in Germany. Only half an hour chat today. We had gotten through all the news the last time we talked a few days ago.

It also started snowing, rain at first, then sleet and then larger flakes. The juncos are stalwarts, all the other birds disappeared but several of these little ones were at the feeders, or hopping around underneath. 

A few hours after that, son and daughter-in-law sent us great photos from their walk in the snow. They have nice trails around their place. I admire them for getting out in it. Everywhere looked beautiful!

Very nice people had attached these to trees along their walk.  How kind of them to surprise unsuspecting walkers along the trail.

Thank you nice people! When I saw these photos I had a big one on my face, I hope they give you one too.

And a big thank you to our sweeties for sending their photos to us.

That's all for this week's missive. 

Thanks for looking.

Stay warm, stay happy and always know someone out there loves you.